How my deeds pain me as time stretches longHow could I have hurt them this way?So rest easy now, my punishment’s mineThe weight of my crimes are my own

But into that stillness you brought me your songWith your voice my company keptFor your tired eyes and sweet lullabiesIn exile I pay you my debt

Once did a pony who gleamed like the moonLook out on her kingdom and sighDejected she cried, “Surely there is no pony“Who loves me, or finds any love in my night.”

So great was her pain, she rose in rebellionAgainst those who cared for her mostShe let the Nightmare fall on those she ruledAnd threatened to grip them in permanent cold

Lullay, dear Tia, good night sister mineRest now in starlight’s embraceMay this cool lullaby reach you in dreamsAnd ease you your passage of daysMay my apologies find you this nightAnd may my sorrow in kindTia, you loved me much more than I knewForgive me for being so blind

Soon did her sister do what was demandedAnd gave to the Moonlight her dueBreaking the Harmony, she saved her poniesAnd banished her, as a wise ruler must do

Such is the weight of the crown that we wear, sister,Duties we always uphold;May you forgive me that foolishness mineAnd live on with no burden upon your soul

Lullay, dear Tia, good night sister mineRest now in starlight’s embraceMay this cool lullaby reach you in dreamsAnd ease you your passage of daysMay my apologies find you this nightAnd may my sorrow in kindTia, you loved me much more than I knewMay troubles be far from your mindAnd forgive me for being so blind

The space now before us, empty and forlornI never imagined we’d face them all aloneMay these sunless seasons swiftly pass, I prayI love you, I miss you, all these miles away

May all your dreams be sweet tonightSafe upon that bed above the lightsAnd know not of heartache, fear, nor gloomAnd when I dream, I’ll fly away to meet you soonSleep, sleepSleep…

Thanks to the talented MsIkarishipper, this alternate version of the song has been recorded and posted on youtube. Visit this link and offer her some kudos: www.youtube.com/watch?v=waPvh7…

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If you've been checking my favorites box recently (for whatever reason), you'll probably know I'm a brony. I entered the fandom last year after I saw the multitudinous output of the fan community; I found the main characters relateable and complex, and these and several other factors have led me back to writing. None of my output between then and now will likely be posted soon, if you were looking forward to that: almost everything I've written is part of one long prose story or another. I've more or less quit writing poetry.

This piece, of course, would be an exception to that. The reason I wrote this is because this song, Ponyphonic's "Lullaby for a Princess", would not leave my head: www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4tyvJ…

I suppose I should explain, for the benefit of the laymen. (If you're already a fan, skip this paragraph, and maybe even the next one; you know all this already.) The world of MLP:FiM, Equestria, is resided over by two immortal, goddess-like figures who move and govern the celestial bodies: Princess Celestia, associated with the sun and daytime, and Princess Luna, associated with the moon and night. A thousand years prior to the current timeline of Friendship is Magic, Luna, disheartened by the fact that none of the populace stayed awake to enjoy her night (and likely deeply depressed), allowed her bitter feelings to consume her and became Nightmare Moon, vowing to never let the sun rise again. Celestia met her corrupted sister in battle, and banished her to the moon using artifacts called the Elements of Harmony. The two sisters had once wielded them to restore order to the world, but their bonds now broken, the Elements became depowered. The first two episodes of Friendship is Magic deal with the return of Nightmare Moon, and the efforts of our six protagonists to defeat this threat and restore Luna to her uncorrupted state.

The Elements of Harmony, of course, require their wielders to share close bonds with each other. Celestia and Luna were no different, and many fans would agree that such a sundering of their bonds as had occurred a thousand years ago in the story must have been devastating to Celestia. "Lullaby for a Princess" captures and records the emotions of the solar princess as she sings to her distant, banished sister, though Celestia can only hope Luna would be able to feel the things she conveys in her words, and find some measure of peace.

Which brings us to the lyrics you now have in front of you. In tribute to the people behind Ponyphonic, I wrote an alternate set of lyrics to "Lullaby for a Princess", from Luna's voice; Celestia's song did indeed reach the lunar princess, and this is her reply.

The way I interpreted Luna's character might be slightly different from what you're used to if you're a fan. I see Luna as someone who understands what rulers must do in the governance of their country, who knows that sometimes the harsh decisions must be made; while it was her unbearable emotional isolation and withdrawal that made her lash out at everything around her, deep down she understands that her outburst should not have occurred, and that her banishment is harsh but just--she does not want Celestia to feel guilty about what had happened, and is willing to bear the burden of her crime by herself. Celestia, of course, loves her far too much to let her suffer alone.

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Edit: Another clarification I should perhaps add is my thoughts on how Luna's corruption works. She was obviously in Nightmare Moon mode when she was first released from banishment, though she would have been lucid and repentant when she made her reply to Celestia. Drawing from real-life experiences with depression, I interpret her as being in a constant internal struggle: some days, resentment and anger drive her mad, and the darker side of her dominates her. On days like these she stares with baleful eyes onto Equestria, wishing for destruction. Some days, she understands why everything is the way it is, and rationalizes her situation while remaining emotionally distant from it. Some days, she just wants to go home, but she knows she can't because she must be punished--which makes her mind spiral between guilt, repentance, and despair. Her state of mind was a mix of the last two when she composed this reply.

When the magic enforcing her banishment broke, some of Luna's emotional restraint may have broken as well, leading to her going Nightmare Moon mode. I suspect, though, that Luna did not lose all of her mind to resentment, and may have been sabotaging herself from the inside in her second attempt to bring the world to eternal night, ending with the Elements giving her a jolt out of her negative emotional cycle in addition to purging her of any external dark influences. Much of her subsequent absence from the show was spent in catching up to the times (to a degree) and getting much-needed emotional healing. All of this, though, is neither here nor there.

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I tried my best to match the rhythm and meter of the original song. Some lines may not fit perfectly, but should still flow well enough over the music. Regardless, edits may be forthcoming.

"Lullaby for a Princess" was made by Ponyphonic, and performed by Christina Larson.MLP:FiM belongs to and .

Oh yes, I sing all the time, except I still can't seem to memorize Luna's reply... It's just so... Stop and start..Well, you have characters, why don't you tell me about one or two of them. They must be interesting x3

Well, on the fanfic front I've got a story focusing on the Night Guard. The protagonist is responsible for delivering daily security briefings to Luna. There are other interesting characters like the old, refined, and sharp archivist, the glyph mage and the blood mage who are brothers, the old magic expert (named him Arcana, and his rank is Major...), the high altitude reconnaissance specialist who has a recurring lung disease, and of course the princess herself... and the Night Guard officer who has a crush on her.

I've also got a spinoff of that story, too, focusing on a mercenary company in the Griffon Empire who can claim a thousand-year heritage. One junior chronicler, one grizzled rhino, one Cathayan pegasus with superb martial skills, one diamond dog sapper, one unicorn mage, and one newbie earth pony who desperately wanted to tag along before realizing just how tedious and/or dangerous their mission is...

On the non-fanfic front, I've got a story inspired by Dark Souls, the Witcher, and the Dark Tower series. It's about a knight from a destroyed kingdom working to restore balance to the world. Along the way, he gathers up a colorful menagerie of companions--several of whom are characters inspired by the rappers of the Wu-Tang Clan.

So you're the one who came up with the lyrics to "Luna's Reply"? They're so beautifully written! I was brought here after I discovered "Lullaby for a Princess", which led me to someone's rendition of "Luna's Reply". The story interpretation is interesting as well. Kudos for your creativity!

By the way, am I the only one who thinks that the idea behind "Lullaby for a Princess" could also apply to Thor and Loki? Just an idea that popped into my head after I heard the song.